Full Text of HJR0031 94th General Assembly
HJ0031 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, In Illinois, over 200,000 children under the age | 3 |
| of 18 are living with and being cared for by more than 100,000 | 4 |
| grandparents; and
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| WHEREAS, Grandparent caregivers, the majority of whom are | 6 |
| single women ranging in age from 30 to 90 with an average | 7 |
| annual income of $15,000 to $25,000, typically raise one to two | 8 |
| grandchildren and have been doing so for five years or longer; | 9 |
| and | 10 |
| WHEREAS, Factors contributing to the growing number of | 11 |
| grandparents raising grandchildren include, but are not | 12 |
| limited to, alcohol and drug abuse, neglect, abuse, | 13 |
| abandonment, death of a parent, HIV/AIDS, divorce, | 14 |
| unemployment, poverty, parental incarceration, teen pregnancy, | 15 |
| and welfare reform; and | 16 |
| WHEREAS, Due to their assumed caregiving responsibilities, | 17 |
| many grandparents deplete their savings and retirement income | 18 |
| and face severe financial risk and economic strains while | 19 |
| struggling to pay for expenses related to caring for the | 20 |
| grandchildren such as, but not limited to, food, diapers, | 21 |
| clothing, child care, medical treatment, legal assistance, and | 22 |
| housing needs; and | 23 |
| WHEREAS, Many grandparents take custody of and raise their | 24 |
| grandchildren after a harmful incident has been suffered by | 25 |
| their grandchildren that has caused the Department of Children | 26 |
| and Family Services to designate them to be "at risk"; and | 27 |
| WHEREAS, Many other grandparents take preventative | 28 |
| measures by choosing to take custody of and raise their | 29 |
| grandchildren prior to their grandchildren suffering a harmful | 30 |
| incident when they recognize that their grandchildren's |
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| health, safety, and welfare are at risk; and | 2 |
| WHEREAS, Grandparents who take custody of their | 3 |
| grandchildren prior to the grandchildren's suffering of a | 4 |
| harmful incident are ineligible for foster care funding and | 5 |
| assistance from the Department of Children and Family Services; | 6 |
| and | 7 |
| WHEREAS, The only financial assistance option for this | 8 |
| group of grandparents is "child only" grants from the | 9 |
| Department of Human Services' Temporary Assistance to Needy | 10 |
| Families (TANF) program; and | 11 |
| WHEREAS, The Department of Children and Family Services' | 12 |
| foster care program provides monthly financial assistance that | 13 |
| is three to four times greater than the TANF "child only" | 14 |
| grants, and it also provides counseling and child care support; | 15 |
| and | 16 |
| WHEREAS, Grandparents raising grandchildren who are not in | 17 |
| the foster care program are as valuable to the grandchildren | 18 |
| and to the State as those who are in the foster care program; | 19 |
| therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 21 |
| NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE | 22 |
| SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that the Department on Aging, in | 23 |
| collaboration with the Departments of Children and Family | 24 |
| Services, Public Aid, and Human Services and any other relevant | 25 |
| agencies, is directed to complete an assessment of existing | 26 |
| State and federal assistance programs that includes the | 27 |
| following: | 28 |
| (a) a review of support provided to grandparents through | 29 |
| the Department of Children and Family Services' foster care | 30 |
| program, KidCare, and other relevant programs; | 31 |
| (b) a review of support provided to grandparents through |
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| the Department of Human Services' TANF program and other | 2 |
| relevant programs; | 3 |
| (c) a review of all other means of grandparent-related | 4 |
| support provided by State-funded and federally funded | 5 |
| programs; and | 6 |
| (d) the estimated cost to the State if grandparents were | 7 |
| not willing to or refused to take custody of and raise their | 8 |
| grandchildren; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That the Department on Aging, in collaboration | 10 |
| with the Departments of Children and Family Services, Public | 11 |
| Aid, and Human Services and any other relevant agencies, shall | 12 |
| explore new or alternative grandparent assistance methods | 13 |
| including, but not limited to: | 14 |
| (a) reviewing the effects to the State of creating a | 15 |
| program that would provide monthly supplementary grants, in | 16 |
| addition to TANF "child only" grants, to grandparents that | 17 |
| would close the funding gap between the foster care program and | 18 |
| the TANF "child only" grant program; | 19 |
| (b) assessing the feasibility of funding the monthly | 20 |
| supplementary grant program described in the preceding item (a) | 21 |
| through a Medicaid waiver; | 22 |
| (c) reviewing the effects to the State of allowing | 23 |
| grandparents who voluntarily accept responsibility for their | 24 |
| grandchildren prior to the children's entrance into the foster | 25 |
| care system to be permitted to enter the foster care program; | 26 |
| and | 27 |
| (d) conducting public hearings across the State to gather | 28 |
| testimony from grandparents, relatives, and others regarding | 29 |
| what assistance they feel they need or would like to have in | 30 |
| Illinois; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That the Department on Aging shall issue a report | 32 |
| highlighting the findings of this Resolution's requirements | 33 |
| and recommendations for improving Illinois' assistance to | 34 |
| grandparents raising grandchildren to the Governor and the |
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| General Assembly no later than July 1, 2006; and be it further | 2 |
| RESOLVED, That a copy of the report be sent to the | 3 |
| Directors of Children and Family Services and Public Aid and to | 4 |
| the Secretary of Human Services.
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